Roses

“Nate?”, I turned around to see Tristan walking towards me after I asked one of the waiters to call him on my behalf when I picked my lunch order at his restaurant

“Hey man, how are you doing?”, I held out my hand, and we shoulder bumped

“I'm good, how are you?”

“I'm good”, we talked for a little while before my packaged order was given to me and I motioned he walks me outside to my car

“Did Olivia send you to check up on me?”, he had that suspicions look in his eyes, already picking up what was going on

“I mean, it's not like she didn't”, I laughed nervously while shrugging my shoulders a little. “But I also wanted to see for myself that you're okay man”

“Like I told her, you all have nothing to worry about. I'm perfectly fine”

“I can see that”, I smiled because I noticed he was back to his old self, the Tristan we grew to know. It's been hard for him these past couple of months, especially when he just disappeared two weeks after the wedding and sent everyone to a panic frenzy. He called in later and let us know that he was okay and just needed some time away to just reflect on everything that's happened. To my understanding he admitted himself to some kind of wellness mental health retreat and used that time to make himself a priority again, keeping contact with Olivia and his family on updates about his progress.

He only got back about a month ago, and he looked so much better than the last time I saw him. He wasn't the man he was four months ago, he had more life in his eyes and his passion for food was still his daily motivation to get up every day, it kept him going.

As the society, I think we sometimes fail to acknowledge that men can also fall victims in relationships, leading to severe downwards depression, and it's not uncommon that most men don't want to speak up because of the fear of being judged and under looked by other people because “they are men” and should be strong enough to withhold anything and simply don't have time to be sad. Men also have feelings and anyone can suffer from mental health issues.

Crying, being sad and showing emotion doesn't make a person weak. It's hard to act to strong for the people around us only to fall apart in silence instead because the truth is, not everyone is as strong as they seem.

Tristan was suffering in the hands of a loved one and in some instances one question that may arise might be, if he felt he was abused in the relationship, why couldn't he just leave? Not realizing it's not that easy to leave an abusive relationship if you really love that person, it's easier to find reasons to stay instead and try to change that person.

“I'm great actually, I'm still learning to get back on my feet again since the wedding that didn't even happen left a dent in my pocket”, he sighed exasperatedly. “But slowly but surely, I'm still getting back to where I was before”

“I'm really glad to hear that”

“Also, thank you for recommending Dr Linkins to me as my therapist, even though I thought I didn't think I needed to talk to someone professionally, it's really done me good to you know, let it all out there every once in a while”

“I'm really proud of you for being able to bounce back, I know it hasn't been easy, and it's still going to take time for you to get full control of your life again. I want you to know we'll all here for you because we all want what's best for you Tristy”

“I know, you all have been amazing, and supportive throughout this journey and I really don't know how to repay your generosity towards me”

“You're like family to us, of because we'll have your back”

“Thanks man”, he held out his hand for another shoulder bump. “And again, I'm fine, so you can report back to Liv and tell her that I'm still good even after this morning's check up call”

“Copy that”, I did a mini salute, and he laughed. “Another reason why I came here is to tell you I have tickets to the leopard's game this weekend, the best seats in the entire stadium. Are you up for it?”

“Are you kidding me?”, he exclaimed while gesturing a mind explosion. “Count me in”

“Great, I'll also invite Kevin, so I guess we'll see you Saturday then”

“I'll be there, no doubt”, he put out his hand for a dap handahake, both snapping our fingers when we released each other hands.

Later that evening, I drove to Olivia's apartment building, we were having dinner at her place tonight. She insisted on doing something special for us since it was more or less our anniversary. You might be thinking since when do we celebrate months into a relationship?, Isn't it supposed to be an annual like thing?

No. Not anymore.

Every second spent with my woman was worth celebrating

What I've realised is that Olivia has a lot of love in her heart, it's just that she hasn't been receiving the kind of love she sends out in return. She was a scarred woman, needing constant reassurance that I wasn't in her life to ruin it, fuck up and walk out, all I had to do was to prove to her that I'm the man she needs in her life. She was my angel, and I intended on being her safe haven for as long as possible because she's honestly what I would say, the best part of my day, everyday.

Grabbing her favorite bouquet of fresh white roses and I gift I bought for her on the passenger seat, I closed and locked my car as I walked towards the entrance. I stopped in my tracks when I felt this chilling feeling that someone was watching me as I walked, and I couldn't shake it off, it almost felt like déjà vu. I turned to look around, and I could swear I saw the leaves of the little bush by the parking side moved a little. I kept looking for a while, catching nothing suspicious in sight and thought maybe it could have been just the wind blowing, so I don't think it's anything to worry about.

I greeted the night guards on my way, and they gave me a thumbs up, I was already a familiar face around here, so I didn't have to do those long sign in procedures, so I was well enough already ascending up the staircase. I knocked on her door and waited for a few minutes before the door was pulled open and then my favorite person stood opposite me.

Do you know the feeling of falling in love with someone every time your eyes land on them? Suddenly feeling complete, and it's like you can conquer anything heading your way?

That's how I felt...

Everything about her was just so perfect. She was selfless, strong, intelligent, sweet, caring and funny. Her smile literally brightens up my whole world. With her by my side, nothing could take me down. She always made me laugh and smile, and I was happiest when I was around her.

“Hey beautiful”, I couldn't help but to reciprocate the smile on her face, also because she looked so gorgeous, considering she was wearing her red short satin robe, my favorite

“Hey you”, she pulled me inside by the collar, planting a kiss on my lips and pushed closed the door closed behind me

“I missed yo- Oh my god, you got a new haircut”, she exclaimed excitedly when she finally noticed the difference in my appearance as we broke away from the kiss with her arms still wrapped around my neck, and she pushed her body up to take a really good look at my new hair do, which was nothing much because I just trimmed the side of my head a little

“I love it. You look so handsome and sexy”, she waved her fingers in my hair.

“Thank you”, compliments from her gave me butterflies to be honest, the grin on my face surely proved it. “You look so beautiful already, and you're not even finished getting dressed yet”

“That's because you're a little earlier than the time we agreed on”, she released me to run her hands through her hair and her eyes diverted to what I was holding in my hands

“These are for you”, I gave her both the flowers and the gift, and she was so happy, she almost jumped up and down a little

“Thank you babe. Your gift is in the other room, I'll go get it for you”, she walked over to the coffee table to put her gifts down but then walked over to me again. “I forgot to ask, are you good though?”

“I am now, are you?”, I smiled, and she giggled, angling her face closer to mine again and pecked me softly on the lips and broke away from me

“So am I”

“Wait,”I stopped her from walking away by grabbing her by the hand, turning her to face me again, looking around, and it was only now I realized what was going on in here. The whole apartment was decorated in that romantic, cozy sitting. Red rose petals scattered on the floor, making a long trail leading to the bedroom to create a sensual atmosphere. The main lights in the apartment were off and the candles distributed all over the room gave the room more lighting. There was also a sweet aroma coming from the kitchen, meaning that she had put all stops on dinner tonight.

“You did all this for me?”, I asked, and she nodded her head. “When you said dinner, I didn't think you meant this”

“Are you happy with what you see?”

“You mean you, or the setting? Cause you know I'm always happy to see you baby”

“Flattered but I meant the setting actually”

“The setting is nice and romantic, I like it. Dinner also smells lovely, I can't wait to indulge in it”

“I'm glad to hear that”, her hands travelled to her robe knob. “I hope you'll also find this to your satisfaction”

He watched closely as I undid the knot of my satin robe and revealed what was underneath it, giving him a sneak peek of the red lingerie set I had on, while pulling enticingly on the small garter on my right thigh. His eyes slowly widened as they dropped to eye me up in wonder, and he licked his lip temptingly while finding my eyes again.

“You're playing a very dangerous game here, Bella”, a wry smile formed on his face as his eyes continued travelling up and down my body in awe, seeming pleased and satisfied with what he was seeing before him

“The game being dangerous works out for me”, I walked over to him again to wrap my arms around him and I felt his hands drift to my waist, his hands staring to do their thing on the sheer fabric of my robe by softly caressing my back

“Question is, what are you going to do about it?”, I tilted my head to the side, a faint mischievous smile playing on my lips as he pulled away from me and took a few steps backwards, his eyes never leaving mine as he locked the door behind him and strolled towards me again

“Why don't we like, skip right to dessert first then we'll get back to the main course if and when we find the time to do so”, he lowered his voice as he angled his head closer to mine, his eyes dropping from my eyes to my lips and I wiggled my eyebrows at him

“That's an idea, no objections this side”

“That's good”, he leaned to capture his lips with mine. The kiss grew heated by the second, and he groaned from the back of his throat, I could swear there was nothing sexier. His hands started roaming all over my body and I felt him slip the rope off my shoulders, his hands brushing softly against my arms as he helped me out of it, and it dropped to the floor.

He broke our contact to bury his head on the side of my head and I tilted my head to the side to give him all the exposure he needed as in seconds I felt his tounge moving around in circles on my neck and I moaned softly, barely able to resist the urge to close my eyes as I surrendered myself completely to him

Our lips met again and this time he deepened the kiss, offering me some tounge in the process while exploring my mouth intensely before he lifted me up in his arms, walking us to the bedroom, and before I even knew it, I was laying on my back on the bed, with him slowly crawling up to me. Then he kissed me so hard that I was practically grasping for air in between short breaks to catch my breath and steady my already beating heart. I unbuttoned his shirt and he shrugged it off urgently, fixing himself on top of me again after he tossed it aside.

“I'm dying to fuck you”, he whispered in between kisses, nibbling on my bottom lip and tugged on it gently as he pulled away. My body was under his control, already on fire, wearing more of him, his touch that sent shivers down my spine. I loved how he made me feel, that pulsating sensation that spread right through me each time he and I were about to get intimate, making me appreciate him even more.

“I'm all yours”, I whispered to him just when we were about to lock our lips together again, finding his eyes

“And you're mine”